The Office Wife (1930)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Thanks for the memories!

Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

"The Office Wife" (1930) is one of my favorite movies. True, I thought Lewis Stone was a bit stodgy, but this mannerism certainly suited his role. Fortunately, Dorothy Mackaill, still at her ravishingly beautiful zenith here, makes a delightful contrast, and there are some excellent support performances from Blanche Frederici (that is the way she preferred to spell her name) as the writer, Dale Fuller as the head- over-heels initial secretary, Hobart Bosworth as the office manager, Joan Blondell as our heroine's sister and Walter Merrill as the loser of the dime. Director Lloyd Bacon, although no doubt exhausted from his experiences with John Barrymore on "Moby Dick", handles his chores here with both admirable competence and celerity. Available on an excellent Warner Archive DVD coupled with another excellent Dorothy MacKaill vehicle, "Party Husband".

This pre-code gem is an early talkie that gives legal wives good warning that there's another woman in her business man's life-his secretary! Aging bachelor Lewis Stone becomes engaged, and his veteran secretary (Dale Fuller) has a breakdown and must immediately resign. The pretty Dorothy MacKaill is immediately promoted as a replacement, getting warning from the plump frump that a good secretary gets by on skills, not looks, all the while fixing her mistakes. It takes a minute for MacKaill to get her bearings with the sometimes demanding Stone, but after she prepares a healthy lunch and shares it with him, they are as close as bees are to honey. Soon after, they are working outside at Stone's poolside with wife Natalie Moorehead and her obvious lover practically consorting in front of Stone and MacKaill's noses. As their marriage crumbles, Stone and MacKaill find out that they can't just have a professional relationship and she becomes torn between him and her journalist boyfriend.When MGM made a very civilized similar film with Gable, Loy and Harlow, this has the potential to be more biting and pretty much is. A brunette Joan Blondell provides cracks and wisdom as MacKaill's roommate sister, while Moorehead escapes her brittle bitchy stereotype in a scene with Stonr that is surprisingly human and allows her character to show a ton of vulnerability and understanding. A scene where Stone pretty much helps Moorehead undress is pretty shocking for its day and gives a good idea of what lead to the Hays code four years later.What could have been a rather ordinary woman's picture sparkles because of a better script than normal. If you can get past the major age difference between Stone and MacKaill, the film will come off as a truly enjoyable story that spreads its innuendo around in massive volumes as if it was a spilled bottle of ink on MacKaill's desk. There's also a fabulous butch lesbian (Blanche Friderici) who provides humor and a brief cynical description of what an "office wife" really is.

The Office Wife (1930) *** (out of 4) Highly entertaining pre-code about Larry Fellowes (Lewis Stone), a publishing company owner who gets a new secretary (Dorothy Mackaill) and it doesn't take long for the two to fall for one another. THE OFFICE WIFE is certainly a naughty little film and especially when you compare it to some of the other pre-codes of this era. The film kicks off with Stone talking to a writer saying that the bond between a businessman and his secretary is stronger than the bond he has with his wife. From this point on we're given a film with several characters doing morally questionable things, which would certainly hit the editing room floor in a few years once the Hayes Office put a stop to this sort of thing. I really thought the film was incredibly entertaining because of its rather frank dialogue, which often time hinted at some sexual stuff. Mackaill, whose career was hot during this era but quickly faded, is wonderful in her role and I think she did an extremely good job at making the viewer feel sorry for her and begin to care for her. I also thought her comic timing during certain scenes were flawless and especially during one where she's "preparing" herself to flirt with the boss. Stone is always watchable and that's true here as he gives another strong performance. Walter Merrill is good in his supporting role as the wannabe boyfriend. The major scene-stealer is Joan Blondell who plays Mackaill's saucy sister. Whenever she's on the screen she's usually slipping in or out of clothes and the camera certainly loves to follow her legs around. If you're a leg man then you're going to be in heaven here as both ladies constantly have the camera highlighting their legs. Again, morality was a big issue back during this era and it's pretty shocking to see how THE OFFICE WIFE ends. I'm not going to ruin anything but it's pretty refreshing to see.

A somewhat interesting early talkie, more for the minor cast members than the major ones. Dale Fuller (Maria Macapa in "Greed") has a stand-out bit at the beginning as a lovestruck secretary and Blance Frederici plays an extremely mannish writer (a Gertrude Stein parody?). The best bit, stealing the limelight away from the female lead, is the movie debut of Joan Blondell as the lead's sister, spending the entire movie either getting into or out of lingerie. The lead, Dorothy Mackaill, seems wooden next to her. The direction has some odd gaffes usually associated with earlier talkies (fluffed lines, cameras failing to follow action properly) that speaks of a rushed production.